New York Gov. Cuomo vetoes eight laws, approves dozens this week

Syracuse -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a bill into law Wednesday that will give smaller beer breweries more flexibility when dealing with wholesalers.

But the governor also vetoed eight bills, including some sponsored by Central New York lawmakers meant to help schools get reimbursed for certain construction projects and protect propane tank sellers and buyers from unsafe refilling practices.

One veto struck down a bill attempting to reimburse the Jordan-Elbridge School District for underpayments from the state due to accounting errors in two past school years, sponsored by Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli, D-Syracuse, and Sen. John DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse.

In vetoing the J-E bill, Cuomo said the school district failed to follow long-standing reimbursement requests for transportation money which could not be made up now.

DeFrancisco and Assemblyman Sam Roberts, D-Syracuse, were sponsors on the bill that would have allowed schools to receive construction reimbursements more quickly. Cuomo disagreed, saying the issue should be dealt with during state budget discussions.

Cuomo vetoed the propane gas bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Bill Magee, D-Nelson, because he said it could limit consumer choices.

Cuomo also signed the following bills into law on Wednesday:

A law that allows Onondaga County to continue leasing part of Onondaga Lake Park to the Onondaga Yacht Club for 25 years. The law continues an arrangement between the yacht club and the county, in which receives $1,800 a year for the lease, plus $50 for each subsequent year.

A law that continues the lease between Onondaga County and Syracuse University at Onondaga Lake Park for the school’s use of a boathouse for its crew teams for the next 25 years. The arrangement began in 1987; SU will pay $12,000 a year in rent, plus a 5 percent increase for each subsequent year.

A law allowing the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and Syracuse University to swap approximately 1.62 acres of land to facilitate the construction of a new 120,000-square- foot research building at the state school.

A law allowing Mercy Flight Central of Central New York to borrow money through the state’s Dormitory Authority.

A law allowing commercial equine operations to claim an agricultural assessment for more than the first two years of operation.

A law allowing state agencies to post certain required reports on the Internet and limit printed copies to requests from lawmakers.